What not to ask the cards?

In truth you can ask the cards anything, but when I was asked this question in a recent interview by a journalist at Well and Good, I thought about it from a perspective on how you can go about phrasing better questions from the cards.

Just like asking a friend for the truth, sometimes we don’t want to hear that answer, even if it is something you need to hear. So in a loving way I ask you to consider a question you should never ask tarot “is a question you don’t want to hear the answer to”.  If you are not willing to hear the truth of the mater or look at an opposing view point tarot can really come off as offensive. Even for myself sometimes the cards have given me answers I didn’t want to hear.  But like a good friend it is in these situations that I pay extra attention and evaluate why I am reacting so much to this card and what I need to do to personally address the triggers.  Is it my ego that is the driving seat? and what do I need to do to get to my highest good and the best interest of others to get me back on track?

Based on my experience tarot is just a mirror to your subconscious it picks up your vibes, feelings and emotions and gives you an indication of where you are trending right now with the topic you are asking about.  How you react and change your path is up to the individual and we can really influence the direction of our path and so can other people.  Which leads me to another thing tarot is not great at – yes or no questions.  The cards can help you evaluate paths or between options which may indicate which path may be better but at the end of the day it is your life, your path, you should choose. Having our own free will and freedom of choice is the best gift  we can give ourselves.

At the end of the day our future is still really malleable, it has the ability to change even if some events seem certain, it is the way that we handle and perceive how the events happen to us that matters most. 

Finally Tarot cards will never tell you when you are going to die, no one but your God or your dietity knows that answer and in my opinion no reader should provide this answer or attempt it. 

Lastly, I don’t like to use Tarot to spy on others, when the intent is for personal gain and not the highest good – the lives of others is not your business unless you have been given permission to explore and share.

So we discussed some negative mindsets and not so great questions to ask the tarot so lets look at the best questions to ask tarot:

• Ask questions about health, work, relationships, finances, personal growth and development – aka how to get unstuck. For example:
  
  

“Tell me about my job/career/relationship right now?”
“What are the paths for me if I stay in this relationship/work/friendship or leave?”
“What do I need to do to get my health on track?”
“I am really stuck right now, what can I do to break free?”

• Tarot is all about exploring your journey through the cards so you want to ask questions first that are “What” eg. What  is happening in my love life right now?” based questions or “Tell me about …” eg. Tell me about the job I am applying for. The reason you want to have these broad questions is because you want the story from the tarot not the final answer- you should decide that. You don’t go to a movie and just ask to know the ending you want to see the movie because you want to see the context, you want to go through the journey.  So in your tarot you should ask these broad questions because unexpected information may come up eg.  a key player, emotion, thoughts may emerge in your story line that is assisting you or acting as an antagonist in your story right now and these are key to helping you fulfill your dreams.
• Open ended questions, phrase questions openly so you can get an open response.  It can be “Tell me about work or my career”  “How can I go about improving my relationship with x”. A good reader will help you re-phrase questions and intentions so that you can get clarity in your reading.  Also when asking your question only think about the question, don’t think about other questions.  Many a time I have caught clients asking for something but thinking about something else and well then the tarot answers to what they were thinking not what they are saying.
• Don’t be shy to ask for clarification, sometimes the card meaning is not quite clear in relation to the context and a clarification card is needed. Often the best readings are had when further clarification or other questions are needed. It can really drill down to a topic.
• Your own insight and reaction to the cards is important too, if you get strong gut feelings in a reading you should follow your intuition – at the end of the day your tarot reader is a guide, the assistant to showing you your mirror, your subconscious.  The cards should reflect your own thoughts and feelings (positive/negative).
• If your reader has multiple decks let the reader know you are drawn to a particular deck.  If you are a sensitive person and like to have gentle feedback ask your reader if they have a gentle deck.
• When we go see readers we can often feel nervous, take some breaths or do a mini meditation before you begin your reading – it will help deliver clarity.  I usually like to do energy work (reiki) on my clients before a reading, it helps remove fears and negativity that may cloud a reading and gets to the heart of the matter!

Maybe you have your own ritual you like to do before a card reading! Would love to hear about your thoughts!